PREIT Executes Lease with Burlington as the Lead Replacement for Sears at Dartmouth Mall

Strategic remerchandising of former Sears box further strengthens and distinguishes PREIT's portfolio

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Jun 19, 2019, 16:30 ET

PHILADELPHIA, June 19, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- PREIT (NYSE: PEI) today announced Burlington as the lead replacement for Sears at Dartmouth Mall in North Dartmouth, MA following the Company's proactive recapture of the store. PREIT is in discussions with other large format retailers to complement Burlington. This strategic remerchandising is another key milestone in PREIT's anchor repositioning efforts to elevate its portfolio with differentiated and high-quality concepts that will increase traffic and sales. With no unleased department stores in its core mall portfolio, PREIT has replaced 13 department stores in 3 years in an active core portfolio of 18 properties, defining the Company as the most successful landlord in navigating recent retail disruption. In these 13 stores, PREIT welcomes over 30 new tenants spanning a variety of consumer categories: off-price, sports & leisure, fitness, arts & crafts, dining & entertainment, home décor as well as traditional department stores.

Burlington, the national off-price retailer, is expected to open in Spring 2020, occupying 43,000 square feet and offering an assortment of modern high-quality, designer and name-brand merchandise, including a large selection of coats, clothing, and shoes, as well as various home décor. As demand for off-price retail continues to gain popularity among consumers, Burlington joins recent addition Five Below, providing another new value-oriented offering to consumers at the mall. Later this year, Hollister and Shoe Show will join the roster of tenants. Dartmouth Mall continues to be a strong performer in PREIT's portfolio with sales per square foot registering at $522 and occupancy of 98.3% as of March 31, 2019.

As part of the reconfiguration and recapture of the Sears space, PREIT expects to add up to seven freestanding dining and retail establishments totaling approximately 35,000 square feet, capitalizing on this highly-visible location.

"Our portfolio in high barrier-to-entry markets boasts no unleased anchors, strengthened by strategic, targeted redevelopment initiatives that further improve the quality of our properties and earnings stream," said Joseph F. Coradino, CEO of PREIT. "This recent transaction at a market-dominant property with a well-respected retailer furthers our mission to enhance the quality of our portfolio."

Dartmouth Mall is the dominant enclosed regional mall within a 30 mile radius in Southeast Massachusetts – well-located near popular vacation destinations of Cape Code, MA and Newport, RI. Burlington will be joining a dynamic roster of tenants including Old Navy, H&M, Forever 21 and Francesca's. The property also boasts a well-curated mix of dining and entertainment offerings including Buffalo Wild Wings, Olive Garden and Panera Bread, and a 12-screen dine and recline AMC Cinema.

About PREIT
PREIT (NYSE:PEI) is a publicly traded real estate investment trust that owns and manages quality properties in compelling markets. PREIT's robust portfolio of carefully curated retail and lifestyle offerings mixed with destination dining and entertainment experiences are located primarily in the densely-populated eastern U.S. with concentrations in the mid-Atlantic's top MSAs. Since 2012, the company has driven a transformation guided by an emphasis on portfolio quality and balance sheet strength driven by disciplined capital expenditures. Additional information is available at www.preit.com or on Twitter or LinkedIn.

Forward Looking Statements
This press release contains certain forward-looking statements that can be identified by the use of words such as "anticipate," "believe," "estimate," "expect," "project," "intend," "may" or similar expressions. Forward-looking statements relate to expectations, beliefs, projections, future plans, strategies, anticipated events, trends and other matters that are not historical facts. These forward-looking statements reflect our current views about future events, achievements or results and are subject to risks, uncertainties and changes in circumstances that might cause future events, achievements or results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements. In particular, our business might be materially and adversely affected by changes in the retail and real estate industries, including consolidation and store closings, particularly among anchor tenants; current economic conditions and the corresponding effects on tenant business performance, prospects, solvency and leasing decisions; our inability to collect rent due to the bankruptcy or insolvency of tenants or otherwise; our ability to maintain and increase property occupancy, sales and rental rates; increases in operating costs that cannot be passed on to tenants; the effects of online shopping and other uses of technology on our retail tenants; risks related to our development and redevelopment activities, including delays, cost overruns and our inability to reach projected occupancy or rental rates; acts of violence at malls, including our properties, or at other similar spaces, and the potential effect on traffic and sales; our ability to sell properties that we seek to dispose of or our ability to obtain prices we seek; our substantial debt and the liquidation preference of our preferred shares and our high leverage ratio; our ability to refinance our existing indebtedness when it matures, on favorable terms or at all; our ability to raise capital, including through sales of properties or interests in properties and through the issuance of equity or equity-related securities if market conditions are favorable; and potential dilution from any capital raising transactions or other equity issuances. Additional factors that might cause future events, achievements or results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by our forward-looking statements include those discussed herein and in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2018 in the section entitled "Item 1A. Risk Factors." We do not intend to update or revise any forward-looking statements to reflect new information, future events or otherwise.

CONTACT:
Heather Crowell
EVP, Strategy & Communications
(215) 454-1241
[email protected]

SOURCE PREIT